Secret IP Treaty Proposal Rubs Tech Wrong

The negotiations over the International Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement that concluded another round this week in Seoul, South Korea, prompts watchdog groups to complain to President Obama about Hollywood's influence over the talks and the lack of transparency surrounding the entire negotiations.

The latest round of the treaty talks concluded Nov. 6 with a seventh round of
negotiations scheduled for January in Mexico.
Participants in the negotiations included the United
States, Australia,
Canada, the
European Union, Japan,
Korea, Mexico,
Morocco, New
Zealand, Singapore
and Switzerland.

According to documents leaked earlier this week, the United
States favors forcing international ISPs to
proactively police copyright on user-contributed material and would require
ISPs to cut off the Internet access of accused copyright infringers or face
liability. In addition, the U.S.
negotiators are seeking international notice and take down agreements and mandatory
prohibitions on breaking DRM systems. The provisions are all favored by major U.S.
content owners.

According to the USTR (U.S. Trade
Representative), the talks were "productive and focused on enforcement of
rights in the digital environment and criminal enforcement. Participants also
discussed the importance of transparency including the availability of
opportunities for stakeholders and the public in general to provide meaningful
input into the negotiating process."

The Obama administration, according to the groups, has "actively resisted
disclosure of relevant information during the course of litigation under the
Freedom of Information Act." In addition to the secrecy around the
negotiations, the groups maintain that ACTA is not a traditional trade
agreement as much as it is a treaty dealing with intellectual property.

"In negotiating agreements focusing on traditional trade matters such as
tariffs and trade barriers, confidentiality regarding some negotiating
positions may be appropriate. But ACTA aims to set international legal norms,
potentially driving changes to substantive intellectual property legal regimes
on an international basis," the groups said in the letter to Obama.
"Attempts to force a multilateral intellectual property agreement through
trade processes unsuited for it does a disservice to citizens, public policy,
and the USTR alike."

The groups said the information that is known about the treaty negotiations
shows that the terms are heavily weighted in favor of big media companies.

"With respect to ACTA's substance, we remain concerned that the terms may
not adequately account for all of the interests that would be affected,"
the letter states. "Intellectual property law requires a balance between
the benefits conferred upon creators and the rights of the general public to
access and use those creations in free discourse and for the public good. Yet
the public and the industries enabling such uses would face crippling liability
under an improperly calibrated intellectual property regime. ACTA could
increase the risk of participating governments taking an imbalanced approach."